A former Georgia State University football player has been charged after allegedly attacking a dining hall worker with a metal chair in Atlanta, while his family says years of serious mental health problems and suspected brain trauma may have contributed to his behaviour.
Carnell Earnest Hopson was arrested shortly after the incident at Piedmont Central Dining Hall, where police say he had been mistakenly allowed inside through an employee entrance at about 3am on Wednesday, 14 October.
Staff and students reportedly realised Hopson was not authorised to be there after he prepared a plate of food. When a worker asked him to leave, the situation turned violent and Hopson allegedly struck the employee with a chair.
Students intervened before Hopson fled the building. Georgia State University police caught him nearby minutes later, according to officials.
He remains in Fulton County Jail facing charges of aggravated assault, simple battery, disorderly conduct and criminal trespass. The injured worker has not been publicly identified and is expected to make a full recovery.
Family raises possible CTE concerns
Hopson’s family said in a public statement that his behaviour, emotions and cognitive functioning began to change significantly during his time playing football and had deteriorated over the past eight years.
He joined Georgia State’s football programme in 2013 as a defensive lineman, played for four years and graduated from the university. His family said he had also recently registered to return to Georgia State to pursue another degree.
Relatives said they had spent thousands of dollars on treatment, housing and legal support while trying to secure long-term care. They believe repeated head impacts during his football career may have played a role and raised the possibility of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.
CTE is associated with repeated head trauma, but the family’s statement does not establish that Hopson has the condition. The diagnosis cannot currently be confirmed during a person’s lifetime.
The family urged the public not to define Hopson solely by the arrest or descriptions of him as a homeless intruder, saying he was also a son, brother, uncle, university graduate and former Division I athlete who had been struggling with serious mental and behavioural health issues.
Georgia State Police Chief Anthony Coleman said the incident did not result from a failure of the university’s security system. He said an employee had opened the door after Hopson knocked without checking his identity.
Dining hall staff have since received additional safety-protocol training, while further de-escalation training is planned, officials said.
